Obama: Government To Cut CO2 Emissions
28% By 2020

Jan 29, 2010 - Ian Talley - Siobhan Hughes - Dow
Jones Newswires

U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday ordered
the federal government to reduce greenhouse-gas
emissions by 28% by 2020, marking a new push toward
energy efficiency and a greater reliance on low-carbon
energy.

The federal government is the largest consumer
of energy in the U.S. economy, accounting for nearly
1.5% of the nation's spending on fuel and electricity,
and the mandate could help boost development of
the renewable and clean energy sectors.

The executive order, "will spur clean energy
investments, create new private sector jobs, drive
long-term savings, build local market capacity
and foster innovation and entrepreneurship in clean
energy industries," said Nancy Sutley, chair
of the White House Council on Environmental Quality,
in a teleconference.

Under the mandate, federal departments and agencies
will measure current energy and fuel use and then
take steps to use more "clean energy" sources
such as solar, wind, and geothermal power, the
White House said in a statement.

Dorothy Robyn, deputy undersecretary of Defense
for Installations and Environment, said the order
wouldn't affect combat operations, excluding more
than 60% of the DOD's greenhouse gas emissions
such as jet fuel for planes and diesel for tanks.
According to the Energy Information Agency, the
DOD's energy consumption represents more than three-quarters
of the federal government's total energy budget.

Still, replacing several hundred thousand vehicles
in the government's fleet and providing renewable
energy and new, energy-efficient windows throughout
its 35 different agencies represents major contracting
opportunities.

Take, for example, U.S. Army's National Training
Center at Ft Irwin, Calif., where a $1.5 billion,
500-megawatt solar power project will be built,
and ultimately expanded to 1 gigawatt. Clark Enterprises
and Acciona, a Spanish renewable-energy developer,
will construct the array, leasing the military's
land in exchange for lower-cost electricity.

Although Sutley said the government may be able
to save up to $10 billion over the next decade
in energy costs, she couldn't say how it would
cost taxpayers to implement. But, she noted that
the nearly $800 billion economic stimulus bill
included $4.5 billion for the General Services
Administration for renewable energy and efficiency
investments, $4.2 billion to modernize DOD facilities
and $300 million to buy electric vehicles for the
federal fleet.